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Short course: Multiple Correspondence Analysis for the Social Sciences

Date:

18/08/2014 - 22/08/2014

Organised by:

London School of Economics

Presenter:

Professor Brigitte Le Roux (Université Paris Descartes)
Professor Johs Hjellbrekke (University of Bergen)
Professor Mike Savage (Department of Sociology, LSE)
Dr Daniel Laurison (Department of Sociology, LSE)

Level:

Intermediate (some prior knowledge)

Contact:

Tyrone Curtis - Programme Coordinator
+44 (0)20 7955 6422
summer.methods@lse.ac.uk

Map:

View in Google Maps  (WC2A 2AE)

Venue:

Houghton Street

Description:

This course offers an introduction to multiple correspondence analysis (MCA), which is a method that allows researchers to observe the patterning of complex data sets through representing categorical variables as points in N-dimensional space. Although it was developed from the later 1960s, MCA has not previously had a large Anglophone following, but it is an increasingly popular method because of (a) its association with Pierre Bourdieu’s high profile sociology, (b) its capacity to lend itself to visualisation of clusters and (c) its potential for mixed methods research.

This course is suitable for:

  • PhD students, post-doctoral fellows and academic staff in the social sciences, interested in one of the main methods for the clustering of categorical data
  • those interested in learning about the methods used by Pierre Bourdieu for the analysis of cultural fields and social relations
  • market researchers, other commercial researchers, and public sector professionals wishing to learn MCA as a means of clustering complex data sets, and presenting attractive and intuitive visualisations.

This course will offer a comprehensive introduction to the principles of multiple correspondence analysis. Comprehensive training is also provided in using SPAD software, the most accessible and flexible package to use when carrying out MCA.

Issues covered include mathematical principles of geometric data analysis, the difference between the active space of modalities and the use of supplementary variables, coding issues, working with the cloud of modalities and the cloud of individuals, clustering methods within MCA, and the use of inferential statistics within MCA.

The course is designed to allow the beginner to grasp basic mathematical principles of geometric data analysis. The course will be delivered by a series of lectures by leading international experts in MCA in the morning, with practical sessions in a computer lab in the afternoons.

Cost:

Academic rate: £890 - available to students and staff of academic institutions worldwide
Standard rate: £1500

Website and registration:

Region:

Greater London

Keywords:

Descriptive Research, Comparative and Cross National Research, Visual Methods, Visual Data Analysis, Small Area Estimation, Mixed Methods Data Handling and Data Analysis, Quantitative Software, sociology , cluster

Related publications and presentations:

Descriptive Research
Comparative and Cross National Research
Visual Methods
Visual Data Analysis
Small Area Estimation
Mixed Methods Data Handling and Data Analysis
Quantitative Software

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